Lore:Arkay

Arkay

Arkay says: Honor the earth, its creatures, and the spirits, living and dead. Guard and tend the bounties of the mortal world, and do not profane the spirits of the dead. — Ten Commands: Nine Divines

Arkay (or Ark'ay), Lord of the Wheel of Life, is a member of the Divines, and also a popular god in other cultures. Arkay is often more important in those cultures where his father, Akatosh, is either less related to time or where his time aspects are difficult to comprehend by the layman. He is the god of burials and funeral rites, and is generally associated with cyclical occasions, such as the seasons and life/death. His priests are staunch opponents of necromancy and all forms of the undead, and are empowered to bestow Arkay's blessings which prevent the forceful misuse of a mortal soul. Thus, any body properly buried by a priest observing the proper rituals is protected by Arkay's Law from being raised as undead. Therefore, necromancers view Arkay as their ultimate enemy, and make covert efforts to undermine his worship throughout Tamriel. Because of this association with, and protection of, mortality, he is sometimes called the Mortals' God.

There are two legends about Arkay's origin. The book Ark'ay the God of Birth and Death has it that Arkay was once a regular shopkeeper with a passion for knowledge. He found a book written in a strange language and spent years upon years attempting to decipher it, slowly ignoring everything and everyone else around him. Eventually Arkay realized the book explained life and death itself, but by this time was at death's door with an incurable plague. Praying to Mara as a last resort, Arkay asked for more time to interpret the book. Mara gave him a choice: die now or become a god for eternity, charged with keeping the balance of death and life in the universe. The alternative is contained in The Monomyth, which suggests that Arkay was one of the very first spirits to "crystallize" after the start of time.

Comparing Arkay to Tu'whacca, Yokudan God of Souls, shows this story is allegorical, framing the sequence of events by which an anonymous Aedra found new purpose in the constructs of the mortal plane and took up the mantle of life and death. Arkay created the Sword of the Crusader for Pelinal Whitestrake, to help him defeat Umaril the Unfeathered.

The Order of Arkay has temples in Sentinel, Ilessan Hills, Shalgora, Dragontail Mountains, and Orsinium.

Gallery

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  An emblem representing Arkay

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  The Sword of the Crusader

• Daggerfall Signs Order of Arkay.png

  A symbol for the Order of Arkay, as seen in Daggerfall

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  The Great Chapel of Arkay, as seen in Oblivion

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  A shrine of Arkay, as seen in Skyrim

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  The banner of Houses of Arkay in Skyrim

Notes

• The Illusion of Death suggests that the cycle of life and death is also called the "Arkayn Cycle".

See Also

Books

• Arkay the Enemy de KW — Instructions for the faithful to foil Arkay
• Ark'ay, the God of Birth and Death de Mymophonus the scribe — How Ark'ay was transformed from a shopkeeper into the God of Birth and Death
• Tu'whacca, Arkay, Xarxes de Lady Cinnabar of Taneth — A discussion on the similarity of gods
• The Consecrations of Arkay de Punctilius Tyrus — The beliefs and practices of the Order of Arkay